How do the prices at Monahan Dentistry and Implant Center compare to, say, other places in town?
I like to compare our prices here to other stores that you might be familiar with. We are definitely not the Walmart of dentistry. I like to compare us to the Costco if Costco had a dental office. And I like to shop at Costco because it's a good price but the value is tremendous. They always select the best products so I'm a Costco fan and I like to compare our prices with that. So we're not the cheapest in town by any means nor are we the most expensive but we like to offer a really good value for what you get here.
What procedures have standardized pricing?
Well, everything here has what is called a fee schedule. A fee schedule is essentially our price list so we've calculated our expenses as well as the time it takes to provide each service so we have a set price on all of the procedures.
How come some procedures vary in price based on what I'm used to?
As an example, there are multiple kinds of fillings that a person can receive. Now in dentistry, fillings are billed based on how many parts or surfaces of the tooth are going to be covered. So as you can imagine, the smaller the filling, the cheaper it is. So a one-surface filling is going to be the quickest and usually easiest filling to perform. So those are going to be a lower price compared to, say, a three or a four-surface filling. So under the umbrella of fillings, each kind of filling may have a different price, but those are set on our fee schedule so that you can see up front exactly what your filling is going to cost.
Are you able to calculate how much my insurance will help pay for?
That is a difficult question to answer because there are just as many types of insurance plans as there are patients. But generally speaking, we're able to look up or verify your benefits right here on the spot and if they're not in the computer, we can often put in a quick phone call to your insurance company to find out exactly what is covered. Now keep in mind, insurances don't typically cover a hundred percent of what you need so we try to calculate as best as we can how much or how much of a percentage of each procedure your insurance will cover. In the end, it is important to understand that the final payment is your responsibility, not the insurance company. Whenever we call an insurance company, there's a pre-recorded message and it always says just because we've verified benefits, it's not a guarantee of payment and they're always quick to remind us about that. So keep in mind that you want to look at the final dollar amount and even though we have a good estimate of your insurance, insurance has the final say as to what they'll pay.
If my insurance doesn't cover everything, how can I afford the portion that my insurance won't cover?
That is where payment plans are super convenient. So my favorite plans that we offer are actually interest-free. You can have 6, 12, 18, or 24 months of interest-free payments. We work with several of the most popular payment plan companies to find you the best deal. One of my favorite things about those payment options is they do have prepayment penalties so you don't have to feel locked into a certain term. If you decide you want to pay it off early, you are free to do so without any additional charge or interest. Now keep in mind that some of those payment plans do require a certain credit score or a certain credit history but we can easily do what is called a soft credit check. People don't want to have their credit dinged just to find out if they qualify for a payment plan. So all the companies we work with, they do what is called a soft credit check so it'll look into your credit history without showing up on your credit report. Now once you decide to go ahead with your treatment plan, that will show up on your credit and you can actually build your credit by making payments as you go.
Do you offer cash discounts?
Yes, for our patients that don't have insurance or our patients who want to take care of their payment up front, we offer what is called a bookkeeping discount. That means that we save a lot of time and energy and hassle of sending out bills and invoices. We would just as soon communicate with you up front the exact cost of your treatment and as a reward for taking care of it up front, we offer a discount. So definitely ask about any prepayment or bookkeeping discounts that could be available to you.